Spring Break
Duke can't finish down stretch
The Blue Devils fall short of ACC regular-season title
By: Tim Britton
Issue date: 3/7/08 Section: News
Last update: 3/14/08 at 12:13 PM EST
Last update: 3/14/08 at 12:13 PM EST
Saturday night in Cameron Indoor Stadium was all about finishing-finishing a senior's career, a turnaround ACC campaign and a dramatic second-half comeback.
But on the season's biggest stage, Duke just couldn't finish.
The Blue Devils went scoreless over the game's final 5:42, and top-ranked North Carolina scored the last 10 points to escape with a 76-68 victory.
Missing its final 11 shots from the field after taking its only lead of the second half at 68-66, Duke had its share of open looks down the stretch. But the Blue Devils simply could not put points on the board.
"We had great looks. You couldn't ask for any better looks down the stretch for us," said senior captain DeMarcus Nelson, who went just 3-of-12 in his last home game. "But it was just a matter of us not making ours and capitalizing and a matter of them capitalizing on theirs.... Tonight, they were better than us."
Duke went to its late-game spread offense after grabbing the lead, but the Blue Devils couldn't convert on three straight possessions to stretch their advantage. Greg Paulus missed two jump shots, and Gerald Henderson missed a dunk attempt that would have pushed the margin to four.
Coming out of the final media timeout, North Carolina regained its once-firm control of the game. Wayne Ellington and Tyler Hansbrough scored on back-to-back possessions for the lead, and a Danny Green dunk with 29 seconds left punctuated the closing spurt.
"To win a game like that, you got to get up by two possessions," Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "It puts game pressure on, and we were never able to put that game pressure on them."
Once that game pressure was placed on the Blue Devils, they couldn't hit enough shots to pull back even. Duke may have been exhausted-from the emotional build-up of Nelson's Senior Night and from its comeback earlier in the half.
Down by as much as 14 early and by 12 in the first minute after intermission, the Blue Devils tied the game on a pair of Jon Scheyer 3-pointers. Duke and North Carolina traded baskets on their next five possessions, the Blue Devils answering each Tar Heels' bucket with one of their own.
But on the season's biggest stage, Duke just couldn't finish.
The Blue Devils went scoreless over the game's final 5:42, and top-ranked North Carolina scored the last 10 points to escape with a 76-68 victory.
Missing its final 11 shots from the field after taking its only lead of the second half at 68-66, Duke had its share of open looks down the stretch. But the Blue Devils simply could not put points on the board.
"We had great looks. You couldn't ask for any better looks down the stretch for us," said senior captain DeMarcus Nelson, who went just 3-of-12 in his last home game. "But it was just a matter of us not making ours and capitalizing and a matter of them capitalizing on theirs.... Tonight, they were better than us."
Duke went to its late-game spread offense after grabbing the lead, but the Blue Devils couldn't convert on three straight possessions to stretch their advantage. Greg Paulus missed two jump shots, and Gerald Henderson missed a dunk attempt that would have pushed the margin to four.
Coming out of the final media timeout, North Carolina regained its once-firm control of the game. Wayne Ellington and Tyler Hansbrough scored on back-to-back possessions for the lead, and a Danny Green dunk with 29 seconds left punctuated the closing spurt.
"To win a game like that, you got to get up by two possessions," Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. "It puts game pressure on, and we were never able to put that game pressure on them."
Once that game pressure was placed on the Blue Devils, they couldn't hit enough shots to pull back even. Duke may have been exhausted-from the emotional build-up of Nelson's Senior Night and from its comeback earlier in the half.
Down by as much as 14 early and by 12 in the first minute after intermission, the Blue Devils tied the game on a pair of Jon Scheyer 3-pointers. Duke and North Carolina traded baskets on their next five possessions, the Blue Devils answering each Tar Heels' bucket with one of their own.
Viewing Comments 1 - 10 of 16
Wolverines
posted 3/09/08 @ 8:49 AM EST
Haha... Go Blue!!!!!!!!
Tar Heel
posted 3/09/08 @ 4:48 PM EST
As a Carolina student, I just wanted to thank the Blue Devil fans in the crowd who wore a Carolina blue ribbon in honor of Eve Carson. My community and campus is heartbroken over this tragedy and so it means a lot that Duke students paid their respects in such a way. (Continued…)
anon fan 2
posted 3/09/08 @ 10:01 PM EST
Furthermore, just FYI, the coaching staff strongly encouraged us to honor Eve's memory with demonstrations of respect
tarheel488
posted 3/10/08 @ 12:24 AM EST
Tar Heel, I understand your frustration- I was really dissapointed with Coach K as well. But that is just the way he is and will continue to be. Being that he forgot Eve's name in an interview (called her "that girl"), it was unfair of me to expect him to get a ribbon to wear like the Carolina coaching staff did. (Continued…)
Blue Devil
posted 3/10/08 @ 12:04 PM EST
As a Duke fan. I was really saddened/confused that Coach K and the coaching staff didn't wear ribbons to honor Eve. I've never been a fan of the Tar Heels (for obvious reasons), but I do respect Coach Williams. (Continued…)
Blue Devil
posted 3/10/08 @ 12:06 PM EST
As a Duke fan. I was really saddened/confused that Coach K and the coaching staff didn't wear ribbons to honor Eve. I've never been a fan of the Tar Heels (for obvious reasons), but I do respect Coach Williams. (Continued…)
TarheelGrad
posted 3/10/08 @ 1:26 PM EST
I just wanted to echo the appreciation expressed by other Tar Heel fans for the tribute paid to Eve during the basketball game. It was an incredibly kind and gracious gesture by Duke, and says volumes about the school's leadership and students. (Continued…)
UNC '05 Grad
posted 3/10/08 @ 4:37 PM EST
I wanted to thank the Duke Student body for their display of compassion and solidarity at the game. The students' efforts to pay tribute to our campus and collective communities' loss were esteemed. (Continued…)
Kayla '10
posted 3/11/08 @ 8:42 AM EST
Although an extreme disappointment, it's not surprising that Coach K neither wore a ribbon nor took a moment to remember Eve Carson's name. Just like a Microsoft or an Intel, his years of prominence have turned him into a cold heartless public face & logo that's driven only by his own corporate giant machine and its bottom line. (Continued…)
Rosalie
Rosalie
posted 3/11/08 @ 8:26 PM EST
Our current culture puts too much an emphasis on ribbon displays. It's now trendy to collect and don a rainbow of ribbons, and there are so many that nobody can even track which color means what. (Continued…)
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